Rallies, protests on The Mall: APAT urges CJP to take suo motu notice

The All Pakistan Anjuman-e-Tajran has requested the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) to immediately take suo motu notice of frequent violation of the Lahore High Court's verdict regarding permanent ban on protest and rallies on The Mall.
In 2011, the LHC chief justice had ordered the chief secretary, Home secretary and the Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) to ensure implementation of the court orders and also warned that action will be taken if authorities failed to implement the verdict. The court also instructed the provincial government to specify locations for rallies in the city so that businesses community should not suffer.
Talking to Business Recorder on Friday, APAT General Secretary Naeem Mir said more than six years have passed but the LHC decision is yet to be implemented in its letter and spirit just because of negligence of the authorities concerned.
Mir stressed that the courts should not announce verdicts which they cannot implement. He added that businessmen, employees of media houses, lawyers and other people working on The Mall and its adjoining arteries are witnessing protest and rallies frequently and there is no one to take action against such people who not only paralyse this thoroughfare but also seriously affect life of citizens and commuters.
The CJP, who is presently dealing with a number of public interest cases, should take notice of this illegality which compromises the routine life of common and underprivileged people, he demanded, adding that there are a number of poor people on The Mall who earn their livings on daily basis.
It is pertinent to mention that commuters, media workers, traders, labourers and lawyers remained trapped on Thursday for hours in long queues on The Mall and its linking thoroughfares after a sizeable number of teachers belonging to the Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) pegged their tents at Faisal Chowk (The Mall) to protest against the provincial government.
Till filing of this report, they pledged to continue their protest till acceptance of their demands, leaving the general public in mental agony due to daily traffic mess. On the contrary, a number of commuters complained that they experienced severe traffic issues mainly because of ill-traffic plan in the city.